Fishing boat stuck in Penobscot River flats for more than 2 years up for salvage

The Roamer, which ran ashore in a cove of the Penobscot River near the Bangor-Hampden town line in July 2011, remains stuck in the mudflat more than two years later. A state official says the boat is available for salvage.

HAMPDEN, Maine — More than two years after it ran aground, a 57-foot fishing boat remains firmly lodged in the flats of the Penobscot River.

The boat, which has the name “Roamer” painted on its hull, was declared abandoned in January of last year. It is now up for salvage, according to Dan Prichard, director of the state Bureau of Parks and Lands Submerged Lands Program.

“The last I knew, the town of Hampden, Waterfront Marina and the state all were interested in having the vessel removed but no entity had the dedicated funds to do that,” Prichard said.

The vessel has been mired since July 20, 2011, when its former owner, Josh Mizrachi, who had renamed it the Eastern Star, lost control of it while conducting a sea trial on the Penobscot River near Waterfront Marine in Hampden.

Story continues below advertisement.

The owner was trying to moor the boat in the river when the line got caught in the propeller, disabling the boat. The boat then drifted into the cove, eventually settling into the flats.

Although many locals consider it an eyesore, the Coast Guard has said that the Roamer doesn’t pose any navigational hazard. In addition, the Maine Department of Environmental Protection determined that while a small amount of fuel spilled when the boat sank, it is no longer an environmental hazard.

Dean Bennett, Hampden’s community and economic development director, said last year that there were no plans to remove it, likely because the cost of doing so would be significant.

According to Prichard, the abandoned boat in Hampden is not unusual.

“There are wooden boat wrecks all over Maine,” he said.

If the boat breaks up or creates a hazard in the future, he said, there are legal provisions that would allow the state to go after the owner for removal costs.